Wargaming announces it has stepped in to rescue troubled developer Gas Powered Games from the brink of closure following the cancellation of the Kickstarter for Wildman, GPG's Hail Mary action/RPG/RTS:

14th February, 2013 - Wargaming, the leading free-to-play MMO developer and publisher, today announced its agreement to acquire Seattle-based developer Gas Powered Games, the maker of memorable and critically acclaimed franchises such as Dungeon Siege, Supreme Commander and Demigod.

Wargaming will take full ownership of Gas Powered Games, bringing into its fold a contingent of veteran developers, including CEO and company founder Chris Taylor. The acquisition will further bolster Wargaming's push into multiplatform expansion, including the recent acquisition announcement of Chicago-based Day 1 Studios and MMO middleware provider Big World Pty Ltd.

"Gas Powered Games' heritage and development pedigree shows us just how valuable an addition Chris and his company will make to the Wargaming family," said Victor Kislyi, CEO of Wargaming. "Gas Powered Games has a long track record of providing incredibly engaging AAA gaming experiences and we can't wait to start working with them."

"Wargaming growth in recent years has been tremendous, and we're looking forward to joining one of the fastest growing gaming companies in the world," added Chris Taylor, CEO of Gas Powered Games. "I'm sure our experience and expertise will help us contribute even more to Wargaming's global success."

Its F2P up to a point. To compete in the Clan Warfare, which is really really fucking competitive you need those TierX tanks. No way you can get past TierVI or VII without paying for a premium account unless you are a NO LIFER of the worst smelly-unwashed-mom's basement kind.

Once you aquire a few top tier tanks and get into a good clan, the game turns into F2P again, because the good clans earn gold by holding territory.

You wont mind paying the dough though, the game really is that good (if you are into that kind of thing).

I quit because it got too competitive for me, I had to show up for team training, tactical discussions, clan battles and other totally time consuming activities.

jdreyer wrote on Feb 14, 2013, 14:05:It's a good question. I didn't think that WoT was really that popular. I suppose they could get a loan and amortize the purchase. Also, I'm sure that GPG probably didn't cost that much, being on the brink of insolvency.

WoT is like crack. It isn't WoW, but there are a ton of people hooked on that shit.

This is true. I was hooked for about a year and a half, spent about 350 Euros on that game in that year and a half. Mostly on a preorder tank, premium time and some premium tanks. Crack. It is. Because its a pretty damn good game.

Lobster wrote on Feb 14, 2013, 15:30:Just what the world needs... more F2P MMOs...

Because the ability to choose without paying through the nose (Yes SW:TOR, I'm looking at you) is a bad thing...

Wargaming's model might not appeal to everyone, but it's incredibly popular, particularly in Russia, and it's making them a shitload of money. Given the current trend of major production houses falling through, I think that some of the more successful new concerns (who obviously have a business model that's working at this point in time) investing in studios is a good thing.

On the back burner like Kings & Castles, probably. Depends on what Wargaming wants them to do.

I asked Chris that same question; he told me there is no defiant answer that he can give right now. I think they have to get the whole transition taken care of and Iím sure there are going to be meetings on how they are going to proceed on future titles.

I agree that there's no question that GPG went for less than it would have had Chris decided to sell the company on the quiet a few months ago. He really hurt his company valuation with his desperado videos. Apparently, it sure seems like Wargaming was the only company stepping up to the plate to buy GPG, and that there was no competitive bidding among companies--Wargaming looks like "it" for interest in GPG.

But I think the experience Chris has along with his GPG employees is near invaluable--hard to even put a dollar amount on that kind of experience and talent, imo. And I also think GPG has a lot of valuable IP, too, which is something many other studios just don't have. I think GPG is worth far more than mere "payroll liabilities" to someone who understands that "bean counters will not successful games make"...;) Here's the thing, though: we don't know what and for how much GPG was sold. It's entirely possible that Chris might've retained ownership of some of that prior IP if not all of it. Or, he may have had to sell everything at clearance prices.

GPG was not in debt, IIRC, so Chris may have been a bit less desperate than you might think--and I don't think he was so desperate that he would have made a bad deal to keep going. I also think he primarily did this for the sake of his employees, too.

Some very positive stuff here for Chris...he doesn't have to shoulder the financial responsibility for the company along with the creative responsibility, and I think he will relish his new role inside Wargaming. I know that I would. If I was Wargaming, I'd care far less about the previous GPG IP than I would about the kinds of future games he could get out of the GPG crew--that's really where the company's value shines, imo.

Wildman was a hasty stab, no doubt about it. Another thought I had about Wildman is that GPG was planning on using some of its Empire-destined code base (consigned to limbo when Microsoft cancelled its arrangement with GPG)--and "Wildman" was what they were planning just to throw on top of that code to some extent. Hence the technological development stages Chris talked about for Wildman, etc.

I also think that Chris is the kind of person who would not have done the deal if he couldn't bring *everybody* with him, at least initially. I might be wrong but I doubt if he left anyone behind. I think that your evaluation and Wargame's rational for buying GPG are very different...;)

It is well known that I do not make mistakes--so if you should happen across a mistake in anything I have written, be assured that I did not write it!

RollinThundr wrote on Feb 14, 2013, 13:41:Again how are they getting all this revenue to buy up devs? Aside from World of Tanks and World of Warplanes I have never heard of any of the titles they've published.

You're making the assumption that GPG is actually worth something. Remember, this is a company that was desperate for some kind of cash infusion as recently as last week. As it stands, the only value GPG has is its IP which is offset by its payroll liabilities.

Meanwhile, Wargaming is probably fairly cash rich on an ongoing basis and running at a fairly high margin considering their revenue comes from a F2P title. Ongoing high margin revenue means the ability to easily add staff.

Wargaming probably bought GPG for a pittance and simply agreed to employ them (or at least some of them) and support some sort of future project. We're not talking a multi-million-dollar buyout here.

I get that, but GPG isn't their only recent pickup. I guess F2P games are making more money than one would think.

RollinThundr wrote on Feb 14, 2013, 13:41:Again how are they getting all this revenue to buy up devs? Aside from World of Tanks and World of Warplanes I have never heard of any of the titles they've published.

You're making the assumption that GPG is actually worth something. Remember, this is a company that was desperate for some kind of cash infusion as recently as last week. As it stands, the only value GPG has is its IP which is offset by its payroll liabilities.

Meanwhile, Wargaming is probably fairly cash rich on an ongoing basis and running at a fairly high margin considering their revenue comes from a F2P title. Ongoing high margin revenue means the ability to easily add staff.

Wargaming probably bought GPG for a pittance and simply agreed to employ them (or at least some of them) and support some sort of future project. We're not talking a multi-million-dollar buyout here.

I get that, but GPG isn't their only recent pickup. I guess F2P games are making more money than one would think.

RollinThundr wrote on Feb 14, 2013, 13:41:Again how are they getting all this revenue to buy up devs? Aside from World of Tanks and World of Warplanes I have never heard of any of the titles they've published.

You're making the assumption that GPG is actually worth something. Remember, this is a company that was desperate for some kind of cash infusion as recently as last week. As it stands, the only value GPG has is its IP which is offset by its payroll liabilities.

Meanwhile, Wargaming is probably fairly cash rich on an ongoing basis and running at a fairly high margin considering their revenue comes from a F2P title. Ongoing high margin revenue means the ability to easily add staff.

Wargaming probably bought GPG for a pittance and simply agreed to employ them (or at least some of them) and support some sort of future project. We're not talking a multi-million-dollar buyout here.

jdreyer wrote on Feb 14, 2013, 14:05:It's a good question. I didn't think that WoT was really that popular. I suppose they could get a loan and amortize the purchase. Also, I'm sure that GPG probably didn't cost that much, being on the brink of insolvency.

WoT is like crack. It isn't WoW, but there are a ton of people hooked on that shit.

Every time you preorder a game, you become part of the problem. Don't be part of the problem.